Birth of a Shade
by natemccizz98
Summary: After his return from Termina, Link is sent away from Hyrule again by Zelda, because Ganondorf has openly invaded. Finding a home among a strange new people, it is years before Link is called back to his home country...by someone completely unexpected.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone! For those of you who have been following my stories, I've hit a writer's block on "Love Sees No Difference." I apologize for how long it's been since I've put up a new chapter on it. But I've had this story circling through my head for some time now, so I decided to work on it as a parallel project. First thing's first of course: _The Legend of Zelda_ is the work of Shigeru Miyamoto, Eiji Aonuma, and all the fine fellows of Nintendo. The picture I created as the thumbnail is based on the Hero's Shade's shields from _Twilight Princess_, so I'll tentatively call it Nintendo property as well. There will be original characters here, but they won't come until later; all the characters so far are also Nintendo's property. I'll let y'all know when the OCs appear. Now without further ado, here we go...**

* * *

It was around five-thirty in the evening when the rider emerged from the eaves of the Lost Woods. Had any Hylians been near enough to mark his presence, they may have mistaken him for a Kokiri, for he was quite short of stature and wore a tunic and cap the same bright green color that they were rumored to wear.

But young as he was - scarcely through his tenth year - he was no innocent forest child. The gold-colored hair under his cap was rather unruly, bearing the signs of a long journey. His blue eyes bore a distant look, contemplative and a little sad. And if that wasn't convincing enough, the bow, arrows, and sword slung on his back would prove his experience, as would the two shields slung to either side of his saddle.

He checked his mount for a moment, pausing to survey the expanse of Hyrule Field. He took in the sights of Death Mountain, Lon-Lon Ranch, and Hyrule Castle in the distance. Then he leaned in towards the head of his young red mare and whispered, "There it is, Epona. Just a little further." As if in response, Epona shook her pale mane vigorously. And with that, the boy smiled, before lightly prodding Epona into a canter.

The boy and his mare moved over the plain for another hour without any pause. It was between the ranch and Castle Town - maybe five miles from the latter - that they stopped suddenly. The lad peered into the west, a puzzled look coming over his keen eyes. He was looking at a mass of canvas tents in the distance, columns of smoke rising from within it. He studied the sight for a time, wondering about its purpose.

"Eh, Zelda would know about it," he finally said with a shrug, before turning north, towards the Castle.

…

Twenty minutes later, he found himself facepalming at the ornately-armored honor guard who stood stubbornly between him and the seat of Hyrule's rulers. "Do you lot take some sort of sick pleasure from frustrating the Princess' friends?" he asked in exasperation.

"She has precious few of those," the guard answered. "If you can't prove you're one of them, then you may go no further."

Barely suppressing the urge to call down curses on the guard, the boy fished around in one of his saddlebags. After a few seconds, his hands grasped something. "She sent me out last year with this," he told the guard, pulling out a lovely ocarina carved from polished blue stone. "It's her personal instrument," he elaborated.

The guard looked skeptical, before his eyes settled on the brass Triforce insignia on the mouthpiece. He started for a moment, then recovered. "Best be returning it, then," he replied, stepping out of the young rider's way and ringing a bronze bell hanging from the inside of the gatehouse.

As the rider's horse walked slowly through the gate, another guard came trotting up. "Is your audience with the King or the Princess?" he inquired, devoid of emotion.

"The Princess, if she isn't too busy," the boy replied, dismounting and unstrapping his weapons.

This new guard raised an eyebrow slightly, a corner of his mouth twitching upwards. "If you'll follow me, then," he said, walking into the keep, the visitor not far behind.

Three minutes of walking and climbing stairs took them to a simple wooden door with a gilded Triforce inlaid into it. The guard knocked softly.

"It's open," a young female voice called from inside. Gently, the guard opened the door, admitting the traveller into the Princess' quarters.

"You have a visitor, Your Grace," he humbly explained to a small figure standing at the balcony outside the room. And at that, the figure turned around.

Princess Zelda of Hyrule resembled, in many ways, her visitor, with her small, slender frame, golden hair that fell to her shoulders, and wide sapphire eyes. But she didn't have the look of a jaded traveller as the boy in green did; her eyes still held the innocence of youth that could be expected from a ten-year-old princess. Right now, she was breaking into a wide smile.

"Link! You're back!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms open as she approached the boy. And for the first time that day, Link grinned. They came together, throwing their arms around each other.

"I see you finally ditched the head thing," Link said wryly as they pulled apart.

Zelda rolled her eyes. "I figured I'd go with a new look," she explained, before turning to the amused-looking guard. "We're fine on our own," she said to the man, who gave a quick bow of the head before leaving the two children alone in the room.

Then Zelda took a good look at Link, beaming. "I think you've grown," she said happily, eliciting another grin as the boy gave a quick huff of laughter.

"It _has_ been a year," Link replied. "You've grown too."

Zelda laughed a little and looked at her friend again, noticing something missing. "You didn't find her, did you?" she asked sadly.

Link's expression sobered as he shook his head. "I still don't get it," he mused. "Why did Navi have to leave? And why couldn't she let anyone know where she was going? None of the Great Fairies saw her, she never went back to the Kokiri, she wasn't even in Termina."

"You went to Termina?" Zelda asked, curious, to which Link nodded. "Funny...that shield I gave you - the one with the owl - that's a Terminian design."

Link's eyes widened at the irony. "Wow," he said drily, before they both broke into exhausted laughter. As it died down, Link finally asked, "So, how have things been since I left?"

It was Zelda's turn to sober up now as she looked forlornly towards the balcony. "Not so great," she answered. "When you told me about Ganondorf's plans, he somehow got wind of it and fled."

"That much I remember," Link interjected. "But I take it things got worse?"

"He declared war a week later," Zelda explained with a nod. "The Gerudo have invaded Hyrule. You probably saw their camp on your way here, a ways to the west. We have troops at Lon-Lon Ranch to keep them from going any further, but they've got the place under siege. Impa is there. I hope she's alright."

Link nodded, absorbing it all. It was some seconds before he said, "I guess it's time to get back in action. At least I know what Ganondorf's capable of now."

Zelda was shaking her head. "Not yet, Link," she said, concerned. "You may have been a teenager before, but it's only been a year since you returned to being nine years old again. You're still only ten. I know you can fight well, but a war isn't like fighting monsters. I want you safe."

Link gave a shallow smile. "Where would I go, then?" he asked.

Zelda sighed. "I _really_ want to say that you should stay here with me. You could get more training from the guards, and we could catch up. But sometimes, I wonder if even this castle is safe. If the troops at the ranch are defeated, there's nothing stopping Ganondorf from attacking here."

"Another continent, maybe?" Link questioned.

The Princess grimaced. "It's not ideal, but it's safe. If you go past Lake Hylia and into Labrynna, there should be passenger ships that can take you someplace. You still have the Ocarina, right?"

"Oh, right!" Link replied, producing the Ocarina of Time and holding it out to his old friend. "I was going to give it back anyway."

"Keep it," Zelda said, closing Link's hands around the instrument. "It can't fall into Ganondorf's hands. We'll write to each other wherever you go, promise?"

Link hugged her. "I promise," he answered. They held their embrace for ten seconds before pulling away. "I'd better get started," he said then, making to stand up.

"It's night, and you're probably tired," Zelda said, forestalling him. "Stay here at least tonight." She got up, opening a drawer under her wardrobe and pulling out a thick, rolled-up mat. As Link watched, she unrolled the mat between her own bed and the archway leading to the balcony. "It'll be just like our sleepover last year," she said, her smile returning.

As much as Link wanted to get a head start on his journey, he decided, with a weary smile, that he couldn't pass up the offer. So he thanked Zelda. They gave each other one last embrace for the night, before the Princess climbed into bed, and Link curled up quite comfortably on the mat, both falling easily to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

With a final scratch of his pen, Link finished the latter of a pair of letters he had been working on, sitting in his room at the Lynna City inn. He rolled up the two notes and tied them together with a thin blue ribbon. Then he turned to the large falcon that sat upon the windowsill, watching him. The bird was Zelda's personal message carrier; she and Link had discussed how they would stay in touch and had decided the falcon was their best bet. No matter where he went, she'd said, it would find him and anyone else he wrote to.

So, as he attached the two letters to the bird's leg, he whispered to it, "Take one of these to Lon-Lon Ranch." The falcon gazed questioningly at him, before its head tilted forward, as if imitating a bow. Link finished securing the letters, and the magnificent creature took to the skies.

His letters, one addressed to Zelda and the other to his friend Malon, were nothing of importance; he was only informing them of the travel plans he had made. After a week of travel from Castle Town, he'd arrived at Labrynna's capital to search for passage to some other land. The only passenger vessel that would take Epona happened to be one going to a far-off country called Belegarth. Link had certainly never heard of the place, but after his ordeal in Termina, he was certain he could handle whatever this new locale could throw at him.

Once the falcon had left Link's sight, he stood up and left the room, gathering up his belongings on the way. Leaving his payment for the room with the inn's proprietor, he began to make his way to the docks at South Shore. He arrived to the equally alarming and amusing sight of Epona being hoisted by a crane and some straps onto the ship they'd be taking. There were a few other Hylians at the docks, a couple families that would also be seeking refuge from Ganondorf's invasion in Belegarth. They began to board after the sailors cleared the deck of the mess Epona had made in her fright at being off the ground. Link boarded as well, with a quick nod to the captain. Scarcely an hour after that, the mooring lines were undone and the ship pulled away from the docks, and Link, standing on the vessel's bow, breathed in the salty air as he set out on what he guessed would be a new adventure.

…

It was five days later that Link found himself stepping off the ship's gangway, surveying the city in which they'd made landfall. He'd been informed by the captain that this city was called Pike, and it served as somewhat of a gateway to Belegarth. It reminded him of Castle Town, with its bustling streets and concentrated two-story buildings. It was tempting to simply settle here, but he'd been informed by the ship's captain that if he was looking to put down roots as quickly as possible, he would be better off travelling to one of the smaller towns. So, as soon as Epona was free of the straps that were used to hoist her back onto land, Link checked her saddle, mounted, and urged her forward.

One thing that struck Link immediately as he made his way through the city was how many armed people there were here. Everywhere he looked, he could see people carrying swords, axes, spears, shields, and other weapons. It actually unsettled him a bit; Zelda had sent him away to protect him from a war, but was Belegarth also at war? He resolved to inquire about this in the very near future.

After he passed through the gates of Pike and onto the dirt road that led out into the countryside, Link almost immediately came to a fork with a signpost. By the look of it, there were two options for him to proceed. The left fork would take him to a place called Babylon, while the right would lead someplace called Tír na nÓg.

At random, he chose the road to the right.

Eight hours' hard riding took him within sight of what he assumed was the town from the sign. He'd had to travel through a dense evergreen forest, the likes of which he'd never seen before. He slowed Epona to a gentle walk as he emerged from the forest and caught sight of the town in the sunset. It seemed a quaint enough place, a large cluster of small thatched dwellings on either side of a river. Hopefully, he could find a home and a place that would hire a ten-year-old in this settlement.

He was broken from his thoughts by a bestial roar nearby. As Epona startled, Link turned his head towards the sound and froze. He could see a shaggy brown bear standing on its hind legs, growling in challenge, though not to him. Towards the town, there was a small figure - a young boy, by the look of it - standing petrified as the bear came back down on all fours and lumbered at him.

Cursing his bad luck, Link quickly took out his bow and urged Epona to a gallop towards the scene. As he nocked an arrow, he watched things play out like a nightmare. The boy reached into the pouch he carried, before whirling a sling around his head a few times. His shot at the bear missed wildly, and he began running towards the town. As Link continued to draw closer, the kid tripped and hit the ground hard, his hand going out in what would be a vain attempt to ward off the swiftly-approaching animal.

In one motion, Link pulled his arrow back, sighted, and snapped off a shot at the bear. It was a hard shot, even for him, but he breathed a sigh of relief as his arrow buried itself in the bear's neck. He continued his approach towards the fallen beast, dismounting and running the last twenty feet towards the bear, another arrow already on the string. Coolly, Link drew his bow again and fired point-blank into the bear's head. After taking some time to remove his arrows from the carcass, he turned to look at the boy whose life he'd just saved.

The lad probably equalled Link in age, but was a bit taller and - especially - less well-built. A mop of dirty-blond hair sat atop an oblong head with small blue eyes. The boy was dressed in a simple white tunic with airy grey trousers and leather boots, still lying on the ground and staring up in wide-eyed awe at the Hylian.

That was when Link heard heavy footfalls approaching. Both boys looked up to see a young armed man, looking about as old as Link had after drawing the Master Sword, running over to them. The first thing Link noticed about this newcomer - and what made him double-take - was his pointed ears, resembling Hylian ears. The young man's dirty-blond topknot further reinforced the comparison in Link's mind. He was wearing a prodigious amount of boiled leather armor and carrying a javelin, a short sword, and a small round shield. Upon stopping, he looked at the scene calmly. Then he turned to the boy. "Are you alright, Trino?" he asked.

The boy nodded, before his older companion looked to Link. "I'm sorry, I don't think I've met you yet," the teen stated amicably, holding out his hand. "I'm Killdeer, it's nice to meet you."

Link smiled and shook Killdeer's hand. "My name's Link. I just got here from Hyrule."

The older boy's eyes widened a bit. "That's a ways from here," he mused. "You looking for a place to stay?"

Link nodded, before turning to the boy he'd just rescued. "How are you doing?" he asked.

The lad smiled. "Better now. I'm Trino, by the way. Thanks for saving my skin."

That comment made Link a little pink in the face; he had never really been one for receiving adulation, but here, there wasn't really a way to avoid it. "Any time," Link replied.

Right then and there, Trino asked something that made Link do another double-take: "By the way, you wanna be blood brothers?"

Link could already see Killdeer gently facepalming at what he guessed must have been a very forward offer from the enthusiastic youth. "What's that mean?" he asked.

After finally taking his hand away from his head, Killdeer answered, "It means he wants to basically be your new best friend, but kinda also like his family."

Link's eyes widened now, for a brief moment. Then he smiled at Trino. "Sure," he replied. "That sounds fun."

Killdeer was holding back laughter as the two boys went in for a bear hug. "If you two are sure about that, we can worry about sealing it in the morning," he said. "But for now, you can stay with us."

Trino silently cheered as Link accepted the offer. So, with Epona and the bear in tow, the three made their way into the town of Tír na nÓg for the night.

* * *

**Sorry for the late update...ideas have not been easy to come by. But, I've finally managed to belt this chapter out. I do have two things to say here. First, those of you in the LARPing/combat sport community may recognize the name of this country I've come up with. It's based on Belegarth Medieval Combat Society, which is a foam swordfighting organization that I'm part of in real life. Pretty much all of the OCs in this fic will be based off of the "fighting names" of my swordfighting buddies (used with permission, of course). **

**My second point is, PLEASE don't be shy about posting a review! I value your comments, and they form an important part of my writing process (my first fanfic was almost entirely plotted based on someone's reviews!). So, please, keep 'em coming! Hope y'all liked this chapter, and I'll see you soon!**


End file.
